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Clothing & Accessories

Work, play, fashion, economic class, religious faith, even politics—all these aspects of American life and more are woven into clothing. The Museum cares for one of the nation's foremost collections of men's, women's, and children's garments and accessories—from wedding gowns and military uniforms to Halloween costumes and bathing suits.

The collections include work uniforms, academic gowns, clothing of presidents and first ladies, T-shirts bearing protest slogans, and a clean-room "bunny suit" from a manufacturer of computer microchips. Beyond garments, the collections encompass jewelry, handbags, hair dryers, dress forms, hatboxes, suitcases, salesmen's samples, and thousands of fashion prints, photographs, and original illustrations. The more than 30,000 artifacts here represent the changing appearance of Americans from the 1700s to the present day.

This button depicts the polar bear, one of the most beloved species on the planet. It, along with the whale, gorilla, and elephant, is sometimes referred to as “charismatic megafauna” because of its popularity with humans.

Environmental groups have often used charismatic megafauna in campaigns to increase public awareness about conservation efforts. By employing people’s inherent interest in these animals, they are able to attract attention towards needs which might otherwise have been disregarded. For example the polar bear has been used to highlight issues ranging from wilderness preservation to climate change.

These shoes were made by Puma, circa 1984. The Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory was founded by Rudolph and Adolph Dassler, in Herzogenaurach, Germany in 1924. The company manufactured track shoes for professional athletes and by 1948, split into two companies, Puma and Adidas.

These Puma Clyde model shoes, named after New York Knicks basketball star Walt “Clyde” Frazier who wore and endorsed them, were popular with graffiti artists in the 1970s and later with hip hop artists in the 1980s.

B-Girl Laneski, (born Lane Davey), wore these shoes around 1984-1985. She was born in Nashville, Tennessee in 1970. Later moving to Seattle, she enrolled in a breakdancing class in 1983, taught by the Seattle Circuit Breakers. The group was impressed with her dancing skills and subsequently gave her the name LaneSki. A pioneer in the male dominated Hip Hop world, Laneski was one of the first female breakdancers to master and develop many of the dance moves created in the early 1980s.

These shoes were made by Adidas, circa 1984. The Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory was founded by Rudolph and Adolph Dassler, in Herzogenaurach, Germany in 1924. The company manufactured track shoes for professional athletes and by 1948, split into two companies, Puma and Adidas.

These Three Stripe Basketball model sneakers were popular with hip hop artists such as Run-DMC in the 1980s.

B-Girl Laneski, (born Lane Davey), wore these shoes around 1984-1985. She was born in Nashville, Tennessee in 1970. Later moving to Seattle, she enrolled in a breakdancing class in 1983, taught by the Seattle Circuit Breakers. The group was impressed with her dancing skills and subsequently gave her the name LaneSki. A pioneer in the male dominated Hip Hop world, Laneski was one of the first female breakdancers to master and develop many of the dance moves created in the early 1980s.